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6.38% Fallout:Industrial Baron in Caesar's Legion / Chapter 6: Reorganization

Chương 6: Reorganization

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With the fall of The Pass, the Legion secured a large number of supplies, including equipment to outfit the growing ranks of Lanius' cohorts, as our numbers had swelled to nearly eight thousand legionaries.

The natives surrendered all their weapons and ammunition, which were distributed among the more veteran legionaries for the upcoming battles. However, ammunition remained scarce, and much of it was produced in a rudimentary manner, reusing cartridges with regular gunpowder that created a lot of smoke when fired.

Smokeless powder was quite expensive, as it was practically only obtained by looting ammunition factories. At this point, finding one of those would be a miracle. The most reliable way to get ammunition without that smoky defect is to buy it from merchants who deal with groups venturing into the unknown in search of precisely those items.

Another thing the Legion sorely lacks is advanced medicine. Chemical-based drugs are prohibited, and my comrade who got hit in the leg had a rough time. If I hadn't treated him, the slave who was healing him would have left the bullet inside before stitching him up. I had to improvise forceps to extract the bullet and then suture the wound, also using some medicinal plants to prevent infection. If he holds on, he'll probably be able to fight again in the future.

Where I got lucky was with the fate of the conquered tribals. Alcohol consumption is forbidden in the Legion, and for the natives, making alcoholic beverages from yuca plants was an ancient tradition. But now, under Legion rule, the large factory they had built to produce all kinds of distilled beer was rendered useless, as the Legion dismantled it. Well, I managed to buy the stills they had, as well as other machines used in the industry.

Having these tools at hand will always be helpful when I come up with something. However, what cost me much more to obtain, where I almost didn't get what I wanted, were parts of a chemical laboratory that the tribals used to make drugs.

The reason they didn't want to give or sell them to me was because they thought they could be used for the production and consumption of substances forbidden by Caesar's orders. But there were many elements I needed to synthesize what was necessary so we wouldn't depend on merchants for ammunition that wouldn't cover me in smoke when fired.

It was difficult, but I managed to convince those in charge of destroying the equipment that if they sold it to me, in the future, I could produce ammunition for the Legion. After many questions to their superiors, I got the approval I wanted. Now, all that was left was to obtain glycerin and nitric acid, and we could start producing smokeless powder. We could reuse spent cartridges for new ammunition, though we'll still need to create some kind of mold for cartridges and bullet tips.

Now that Lanius' cohorts have many more weapons, the use of scarce ammunition will increase, and it's a market I could fill, although the Legion usually pays more in goods than in its own currency. So, I might end up with hundreds of slaves instead of coins.

"Legionary, stop daydreaming," said a centurion.

"Ave, true to Caesar. Centurion, how may I serve you?" I said to my superior.

"I wanted to see you, Gaius. Your performance on the battlefield hasn't gone unnoticed, especially when the frumentarii questioned your comrades and they told us about your cowardice in combat. Refusing to obey your superior's orders is punishable by crucifixion," said the centurion, staring at me intently.

"For not following a stupid order? It would have gotten everyone killed. Instead, I took down dozens of profligates while they were distracted," I responded to the centurion.

"Who do you think you are to talk back to me, legionary? Those were your orders, and you should have followed them... Come with me now," said the centurion.

I followed the centurion to his tent, which was empty, and he pointed to a chair.

"Well done destroying the tribals' defenses," said the centurion, changing his tone.

"And this change in attitude?" I was puzzled.

"You did well. You made the right decision and achieved a great victory. You saved a wave of legionaries from having to weaken the defenses. You left much of the tribals' defenses disabled because you could shoot them from behind. But I still had to reprimand you publicly. I can't let legionaries do whatever they want to show off their martial prowess without knowing what they need to do. I understand you come from a more advanced tribe than what we usually deal with, so I get that you have that knowledge. But remember that most only think about charging, so it's vital to listen to your superiors," said the centurion.

"The decision the decanus made was too hasty. He just wanted to get under the palisade as soon as possible without considering that we had all the tribals' attention, centurion," I responded to the officer.

"Yes, Decanus Crassus was always known for seeing a problem and seeking to destroy it as quickly as possible, which has served him well in the campaign but not so much against the tribals' fortifications. Well, I need a new decanus, and you stand out the most among them all. You already have more kills to your name than what we normally require for promotion. You have the tactical knowledge and initiative. So go get your new helmet, and you'll take charge of your comrades... Any questions?" said the centurion.

"I need reinforcements for my group. I have one wounded and one dead. Also, will I have to handle logistics?" I asked immediately.

"I'll get you legionaries when we return to Castra Sol Rubrum. No, that's my first decanus's job, so you won't have to take your hands off that rifle Legate Lanius gave you. If you keep this up, I'll have you by my side one day at the legate's table, discussing the expansion of Lord Caesar's Legion," said the centurion.

"Thank you, Centuri-uh..." I tried to recall the centurion's name, but I realized I had never heard it.

"Centurion Nicodemus. Don't forget it, Decanus Gaius, or you'll be facing the lash next time. Understood? Dismissed," said Centurion Nicodemus.

I went to collect the distinctive helmet of a decanus and returned to my tent. The bastards I called comrades were already scheming how to divide my belongings, thinking I was going to be crucified.

I took advantage of the situation by having them train in squad techniques. During the week that Lanius' cohorts stayed in the area, many legionaries were mobilized to extract wood from the nearby forests, which were much denser than the characteristic barren trees of the wastelands.

As the new leader of my comrades, I had considerable control over their regimen, and I drilled them rigorously to ensure that what happened in the village we assaulted, where they charged in recklessly, would never happen again.

Later that week, we returned to the eastern cohorts' base of operations. In just over a month, we had conquered two tribes and taken several thousand captives who were now roaming the city, which was beginning to grow along with Legate Lanius' victories.

During our time at the base, I took my time setting up the best possible chemical lab using one of the shelter's rooms. Although I would have preferred something with much more technology and safety measures, I couldn't complain as long as the powder production began.

As I had predicted, when the Legion found out I had the ability to produce smokeless powder, the cohort's supply officers traded much of what they had looted to alleviate the severe ammunition shortage that plagued the eastern campaign.

In exchange for raw materials, animals, and slaves, I continued supplying the Legion with powder, which started building a small center where hundreds of slaves were put to work assembling all the parts—the bullet casings, powder, and projectile—into a massive chain of slave labor that operated with relative stability.

The Legion also had requests for explosives, but these were not as large as those for powder, so they were made only upon the officers' orders and never mass-produced. Unlike the powder, which the Legion bought up entirely as soon as production was completed.

I now had nearly a thousand Legion slaves working for me, filling the shelter. According to the report given to me by the supervising robot, they had behaved relatively well, apart from some personal issues, likely because they now enjoyed some freedom without the collar around their necks.

Even when several hundred of these slaves worked outside the shelter tending to the livestock, none had escaped, and now I could understand why.

Where else could they find guaranteed food and water, plenty of security due to the presence of legionaries, and even considerable leisure time using the holotapes available in the shelter? They were in paradise compared to wherever they had been captured.

But all future slaves I acquire won't be as lucky. The Legion will start questioning why I'm freeing so many slaves, so those who can't live in the shelter will keep their collars until I find a way to expand the underground facilities.

At the beginning of November, the Legion began to mobilize again. We received more legionaries from the west, and many of the assimilated tribesmen were trained within our ranks. The small Lanius cohort of four thousand men had grown to ten thousand in just a few months.

This time, the direction of our attack would be north, specifically the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. Now that we had some firsthand information, this wouldn't be a problem; the priests wouldn't pose a challenge to Lanius' forces.

I received my reinforcements. The wounded legionary was recovering but wouldn't be available soon, so I was given two novice legionaries who had yet to shed blood.

I had to pay out of my own pocket to ensure all my men had rifles. I'd rather lose a few coins than have to constantly retrain legionaries who can only fight with their machetes.

Bullets were still scarce, but now everyone with a weapon at least had four bullets to use, and the veterans were given more ammunition.

This time, I understood why our previous decanus liked being the first to arrive at battle. It allowed me to train my men in real combat under controlled conditions, ensuring minimal casualties on our side and maximum casualties on the enemy's.

Fighting an army of pilgrims and fanatics dressed in black robes couldn't have been easier. They were practically wearing targets on their bodies, making them easy to spot, even for the most inexperienced among us as they moved through the desert.

During the five days it took for the main force to arrive, we hunted these religious zealots until we had a group with considerable experience in shooting and who were slowly adapting to urban combat tactics, which we would apply when attacking small settlements.

What I still needed was a light machine gun, and we'd have a good capability to face whatever the enemy might throw at us.

The town of Mora wasn't difficult to capture. The town fell on the same day the army arrived. Lanius had all the priests crucified and the entire population taken captive.

The conquest of this tribe was easy, with hardly any legionary deaths.

However, I noticed we were being watched from the north.

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Chill_ean_GUY Chill_ean_GUY

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Chương 7: An explosive welcome

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"Careful, careful, get down, get down!" I shouted to my men.

A missile was launched at the Legion's marching columns. My men and I managed to jump to the other side of the road, but we saw dozens of legionaries who weren't as lucky.

Limbs flew everywhere—legionaries with shattered bodies, some screaming when they realized they had lost a leg or even both.

Before we could get up, another missile was fired at the legionaries who had only just begun to scatter.

Once again, several legionaries died in the attack.

I noticed a figure peeking from the hills with a rocket launcher, but I managed to hit him in the chest with my battle rifle.

"What happened to the patrols that were supposed to secure our passage?" I yelled, hoping to be heard by a superior.

With no response, I assumed the centurion had died in the ambush.

"Legionaries, to the hills!" I shouted, pointing toward the source of the attack.

Everyone who heard my orders began charging up the hill, which wasn't very steep. Soon after, more figures appeared with rocket launchers, but this time they were gunned down by the number of legionaries with rifles who fired as soon as they showed up.

Reaching the top, we began firing at the group retreating after seeing dozens of legionaries charging toward them.

After turning them into bullet-riddled corpses, we inspected their weapons. They weren't the usual repaired arms or crude pipework weapons—these were well-crafted arms, and what stood out most was the fact they had rocket launchers.

Just thinking about this and recalling the Legion's tactics, I could already foresee that the Legion would suffer heavy casualties fighting these tribals.

This time we didn't continue north. The Legate decided to march east to face the Federation of Summers. We didn't know much about what kind of weaponry they had, but the leader's title—The Booming Brigadier General—suggested they had a strong fondness for explosives.

And we soon felt the consequences. For some time, they had prepared for the Legion's attack, and the area was littered with mines. Losing complete contact with patrols meant to cover our flanks became a regular occurrence as we tried to move forward.

Using carriages was out of the question. We had already lost nearly twenty of them to mines, forcing us into a slow, tedious advance with heavy losses.

This Federation of Summers had access to all kinds of explosives—from grenades and dynamite to grenade launchers, rocket launchers, and to top it all off, high-quality machine guns. This meant either someone was supplying them with good arms, or they had the means to make them themselves. Either way, it made me burn with anticipation to defeat them and seize whatever we could.

Many of the merchants in Castra Sol Rubrum were eagerly awaiting the usual spoils the Legion would bring back, but I had the privilege of choosing first. If I could get my hands on the tools needed to manufacture weapons, I would become so essential to the Legion that no matter how meritocratic they claim to be, they would owe me one favor after another.

Fortunately, since our last battle with the previous tribe, my contubernium had been classified as prime. We weren't the first to enter combat anymore; we were held in reserve for the second wave. We saw less action, but when we were sent on missions, it wasn't simply to scout.

Our usual tasks were to eliminate groups of enemies that had caused problems for our scouts or to attack fortified points to secure the Legion's flanks. This wasn't as simple as fighting local tribal militias defending their villages with whatever little weaponry they had.

But we were finally putting into practice the modern group tactics I had been teaching my contubernium, especially after we acquired a machine gun from the dead.

This time it took us two weeks to cover a relatively short distance, but moving through mines and constant explosive ambushes turned our once rapid advance into a slow crawl.

Upon reaching the capital of the tribals, Fort Summers, we found the name deceiving—these fortifications were centuries old, built long before the Great War.

We counted ourselves a bit lucky because if it had been a pre-war military base, capturing it would have been impossible with the current difference in weaponry.

It took the recruit legionaries a week to clear the area of mines while we surrounded the town. Even with the protection of several of the Legion's expert snipers to prevent the locals from attacking the legionaries as they cleared the area, the losses were massive compared to previous casualties. Around a thousand legionaries were killed, and half were wounded to varying degrees.

But now, the path to the city was clear, and the locals didn't have as many defenses beyond the ancient fortifications.

True to the Legion's nature, several waves of recruit legionaries were sent in to overwhelm the defenders and force them to spend their ammunition, hoping it was limited. Up to this point, they had demonstrated no hesitation in firing, and their men always carried plenty of magazines or spare bullets.

"Centurion, requesting permission to seize the opportunity with my men. We can take out the gunners—they're very exposed, and we can use our rifles," I requested authorization from Centurion Nicodemus.

"Go," the centurion responded, while watching the constant explosions and the chains of fire coming from the machine gun nests.

I took my contubernium and advanced several meters until we found a good firing position and started shooting at the machine gunners.

It only took me five minutes to silence the machine gun nests, taking out around two dozen men who had taken over the machine guns. It seemed no one else wanted to take them up, knowing it would almost certainly mean a bullet to the head.

As we continued moving toward the ancient fortress, another wave of recruit legionaries was sent in, as only a handful of legionaries were still moving through the cratered field littered with dismembered body parts.

This time, without the machine gun fire and with my contubernium well-positioned to shoot anyone who stood up in the fortifications, nearly all the legionaries managed to enter the city, though many explosions began to echo around us.

That meant there were mines and booby traps throughout the city.

This time, the order to charge was given, sending what remained of the army into the city. Recruits, prime, and veterans all entered the city, making excellent use of the recruits as cannon fodder while my group and I moved safely through the city, eliminating any threats from the windows.

After several minutes of intense house-to-house fighting by the recruit legionaries, the assault on the fortifications began. It didn't take long for an improvised ramp to be built, and the legionaries quickly began overwhelming the defenders.

There was no rush for my men—they had already earned their glory, and if I didn't lose any of them, it would be a great personal victory.

By the time it was our turn to enter the fortifications, the fighting was over, and the legionaries had already begun looting the fortress, mostly grabbing high-quality weapons. Everyone knew how to appreciate the fine craftsmanship of these tribals' weapons.

Entering the fort's building, we found it was where the Federation's leader had resided. But in the underground section of the fort, it seemed the real valuables were stored, as several legionaries were trying to break down a door protecting the underground area.

Since there was no terminal to hack, my skills were useless. I might have tried picking the lock, but I doubted it would work with a secured door, so I just waited for the legionaries using a fallen steel beam as a battering ram to keep at it.

When the door finally gave way, we found a small group hiding inside, but we also found the real treasure.

There was machinery that almost certainly belonged to a munitions factory. This machine did the same work as the hundreds of slaves in the Legion's main settlement, who were making bullets for the conquest of the East.

Their weapons production was rudimentary, but they had pre-war blueprints for all the weapon parts, so all we needed was to hand them over to someone who knew how to manufacture them, or find the machines they used to make the parts, and we could start a decent assembly line.

Additionally, there were many elements used in the creation of gunpowder, which could improve what we already had. It could boost the production of glycerin and the acid needed for gunpowder, and we could produce more ammunition.

While I was focused on the machinery, the legionaries had their eyes on the slaves and the weapons here.

"Gaius, stop drooling, the Legate is coming," Drusus said, elbowing my arm.

The Legate arrived, surrounded by centurions and veteran legionaries, and began inspecting the facilities attentively until his gaze fell on me.

"True to Caesar, Decanus. I see you've arrived in one piece. I suppose you know what these machines are for? Avoid the technical terms," said Legate Lanius in his characteristic voice.

"True to Caesar, Legate. That one produces ammunition, that area assembles weapons, and that zone over there is used for making smokeless gunpowder. We've found the reason they had so many explosives and ammunition to spare," I replied to the Legate.

"Fine acquisitions for the conquest of the tribals. The Legion will put them to good use, so don't get your hopes up," said Legate Lanius.

"These machines and installations require specific care and maintenance, Legate Lanius,"i responded the Legion officer.

"I suppose you're the only one who knows how to perform that maintenance, aren't you, Decanus?" said Lanius, maintaining his tone of voice.

"I'm not saying I'm the only one—those captives over there probably know how to use them. But when the machine breaks down, which it will because that's just how finicky machines are, that's where I come in," I replied to Lanius.

"Therefore, it would go against Lord Caesar's teachings if something that can produce more but in an unreliable manner is discarded in favor of more reliable methods. But with the knowledge that is valuable to your tribe, let's talk about payment to the Legion," said Lanius after thinking for a few seconds.

"We can discuss payment once we see the production capacity, Legate Lanius?," I said to the Legion officer.

"So be it, Decanus. Start disassembling it," said the Legate, leaving the room, followed by all his men.

'Blessed be Caesar's disdain for unreliable machinery.'

With the help of the legionaries, we disassembled everything in a couple of days and sent it back to Castra Sol Rubrum, as the Legion would continue south to finish off the last pockets of resistance on the eastern flank.

And it was a group that I truly hated with all my heart.

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SUY NGHĨ CỦA NGƯỜI SÁNG TẠO
Chill_ean_GUY Chill_ean_GUY

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